Haggai 2 12

Haggai 2:12 kjv

If one bear holy flesh in the skirt of his garment, and with his skirt do touch bread, or pottage, or wine, or oil, or any meat, shall it be holy? And the priests answered and said, No.

Haggai 2:12 nkjv

"If one carries holy meat in the fold of his garment, and with the edge he touches bread or stew, wine or oil, or any food, will it become holy?" ' " Then the priests answered and said, "No."

Haggai 2:12 niv

If someone carries consecrated meat in the fold of their garment, and that fold touches some bread or stew, some wine, olive oil or other food, does it become consecrated?'?" The priests answered, "No."

Haggai 2:12 esv

'If someone carries holy meat in the fold of his garment and touches with his fold bread or stew or wine or oil or any kind of food, does it become holy?'" The priests answered and said, "No."

Haggai 2:12 nlt

'If one of you is carrying some meat from a holy sacrifice in his robes and his robe happens to brush against some bread or stew, wine or olive oil, or any other kind of food, will it also become holy?'" The priests replied, "No."

Haggai 2 verses

Haggai 2 12 Meaning

Haggai 2:12 asks a rhetorical question concerning the nature of holiness: "If one carries holy meat in the fold of his garment and touches with his fold bread or stew or wine or oil or any other food, does it become holy?" The implied answer is no. This verse teaches that holiness, particularly in a ritual sense, does not spread easily or automatically through mere physical contact from a consecrated object to common, unconsecrated items. It sets the stage for the contrast in the subsequent verse (Hag 2:13), where defilement is shown to spread much more readily and pervasively. This lesson was crucial for the post-exilic community in understanding why their efforts were unblessed despite living in the land and performing some rituals; their inherent defilement prevented their offerings and lives from being acceptable to God.

Haggai 2 12 Context

Haggai 2:12 is part of a series of two rhetorical questions posed by the prophet Haggai to the priests in Judah, followed by a direct application of their implications to the people. This occurs during the reign of King Darius, on the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month (Chislev), a few months after the people had recommenced work on rebuilding the temple (Hag 1:15, 2:10). The immediate context of these questions is God explaining why, despite some renewed effort, their material and spiritual state had not improved and their work was still considered "unclean" (Hag 2:14). The people's long neglect of the temple and their preoccupation with their own houses (Hag 1:4), combined with their inherent sin, had defiled them and their output. These questions about ritual purity were designed to clarify for the priests and by extension the people, the theological principles regarding the transmission of holiness and defilement, which they seemed to misunderstand. This misunderstanding directly impacted their spiritual posture and effectiveness in serving God and rebuilding the temple.

Haggai 2 12 Word analysis

• If one carries (יאמר אדם, yomart adam): Lit. "If a man says," but contextually it means, "if a man is." Introduces a hypothetical scenario or case law.
• holy meat (בשר קדש, basar qodesh): Refers to a portion of an animal sacrifice that has been consecrated and set apart for the Lord. This meat is intrinsically holy due to its dedication.
• in the fold of his garment (בכנף בגדו, bekanaph bigdo): Kanaph means "wing," "edge," or "corner." Beged is "garment." This signifies carrying something in the hem or corner of a cloak, which was a common way to carry small items. The emphasis is on the garment itself being the direct point of contact.
• and touches (ויגע, vaya'ga): To come into contact with, to touch. Simple physical contact.
• with his fold (בכנפו, bekanapho): Reemphasizes that the contact agent is the garment's fold, not the holy meat directly, nor the person's bare hand. This distinguishes indirect contact from direct.
• bread or stew or wine or oil or any other food (לחם או נזד או יין או שמן או כל מאכל, lechem o nazid o yayin o shemen o kol ma'akal): A list of common, everyday food items. These are explicitly "unholy" or "common" (non-consecrated) by nature, as opposed to the holy meat.
• does it become holy? (היקדש, hayiqdash): The interrogative particle ha- signifies a question. Yiqdash means "it will be made holy" or "it will become holy." The rhetorical question expects a clear "No." This underlines that holiness, as defined by the law, generally requires deliberate, often priestly, action or dedication for transfer, not merely passive, indirect contact.

Haggai 2 12 Bonus section

The questions in Haggai 2:12-13 directly refer to Levitical law principles (e.g., Lev 6:27-28 on clean things touching consecrated meat vs. Lev 15:19-24 on unclean things making others unclean). However, the specific nuances posed by Haggai push beyond simple reiteration of the law to draw a profound theological conclusion. Scholars emphasize that Haggai's questions serve an exegetical and pastoral purpose, showing the people (and the priests as their teachers) that their prior ritual negligence and disobedience had a far greater defiling effect than they perceived. This principle challenges any superficial understanding of religious participation and stresses that only through a change of heart and diligent obedience can their work and lives truly be acceptable to God. This paved the way for the later understanding in the New Testament that true holiness comes from inward transformation by God's Spirit, not external proximity to sacred objects or places.

Haggai 2 12 Commentary

Haggai 2:12 provides a fundamental theological insight into the nature of holiness within the Old Testament ritual system. The question posed to the priests highlights a critical misunderstanding among the people. They might have believed that merely being physically near something holy, or carrying a sacred item, could impart holiness to their ordinary lives or possessions. This verse firmly refutes such a notion: sacredness is not a contagious property that passively spreads to unconsecrated items through casual or indirect physical contact, even if carried by something that has touched a holy object.

The significance lies in preparing the ground for Haggai 2:13, where the opposite principle is shown: defilement does spread easily and pervasively. God uses this contrast to explain to the people why their present state, their labor, and their sacrifices remain "unclean" (Hag 2:14). It wasn't enough that they were building the temple; their hearts and their previous actions (neglect, selfishness) had rendered them, and therefore their work and offerings, defiled. Holiness requires specific acts of consecration and adherence to God's commands; defilement, however, contaminates far more broadly and easily, often simply by proximity to uncleanness. The lesson here is profound: simply engaging in outward religious activities or being physically present near holy things does not purify a defiled heart or an unholy life. True purification and holiness demand genuine repentance, obedience, and atonement as prescribed by God.